ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. cold — not warm
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. chest — a box
  7. mine — for digging
  8. spring — of water
  9. chest — of your body
  10. can — to be able to
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. spring — the season
  14. cold — an illness
  15. can — a tin
  16. mark — a trace
  17. mark — a grade
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. spring — a coil
  22. can — a tin
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com